Score:5

What is the .var folder for in my Home Directory

in flag

What is the ~/.var folder used for and is it safe to remove the content within this folder?

James Westman avatar
us flag
If you have anything installed via flatpak, `~/.var/app` contains those apps' cache and data files.
Score:10
ng flag

Well, /var contains variable data files. This can include spool directories and files, administrative and logging data, and transient and temporary files.

Since it's under your home directory, it's probably safe to assume that files under ~/.var serve the same purpose as files under /var except that they are for your user only.

Perhaps an application that you use is storing important files there. You can certainly inspect the files yourself.

A good rule of thumb is that if you don't know what something does in a system or config folder, it's best to leave it alone.

Score:7
cn flag

The ~/.var directory is normally used for Flatpak, since it stores its installed programs and their data. But, it could also be another program that's writing into that directory. Hope this helps.

Alexander Skvortsov avatar
cn flag
Should it be a part of the "home backup" or it is safe to skip it?
pw flag
The flatpak applications could store their configurations there but otherwise they should be safe to skip in backups.
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